


Do-Over

by Pocketlesssouls



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, Gay, Love, Love Confessions, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-02
Updated: 2018-04-21
Packaged: 2019-04-17 03:38:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 16,606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14179719
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pocketlesssouls/pseuds/Pocketlesssouls
Summary: It's not easy to break bad habits, and you can't change someone's upbringing overnight, but over time Harry was able to teach Draco that he didn't always have to believe what his father taught him, and in return, Draco taught him that he didn't have to believe what the Dursleys said about him either.The highlights of what life would have been like if Harry had been sorted into Slytherin.





	1. Year One

**Author's Note:**

> Note: This is my version of how things would have been if Harry had been sorted into Slytherin. Some major things will be changed, but the general plot remains the same.  
> Also, this is an edited and improved version of a story I wrote two years ago. So it is also my do-over.

 “I think I think I can tell the wrong sort for myself, thanks.” Harry regretted the words as soon as he’d said them. He saw the disappointment in Draco’s eyes and suddenly knew what was going on. Draco was just trying to make friends the only way he knew how- feigning confidence and dropping his family name. Harry realized that Draco was trying to impress him.    
 Harry told himself during the train ride to school that he would make friends here. He knew this was a new beginning that he would never get again. He had to make it the ultimate do-over for his pathetic life at Privet Drive, and here he was rejecting a formal invitation of friendship.  
 He looked from Ron’s smiling face to Draco’s frowning one. For some reason he felt like whatever he said next would have a big impact on his life at Hogwarts and maybe even his life in general. He did not want to start this new life off on the wrong foot.  
 Draco let his extended hand fall, but Harry caught it and held it tightly. “But if you still want to be friends, I’d like that,” he finished. Draco met his eyes, and for a second Harry swore he saw Draco’s perfected smirk turn into a genuine smile.  
 Harry could feel everyone watching them, but no one had time to react, because professor McGonagall was already back. The group was led through the Great Hall where hundreds of other students waited for them. Harry tried to stay in the middle next to Draco and an uneasy looking Ron. He looked back and forth between them and smiled reassuringly at his two new friends.  
  He enjoyed not having all eyes on just him for a change. The older students were craning their necks to take in all of the first years, which meant it wasn’t just Harry under the spotlight. Meanwhile, Draco was reveling in the attention. He stuck his chin up in the air and planted a satisfied smirk on his face. Harry couldn’t help but marvel at how different they were.  
 Dumbledore gave a quick speech –most of which Harry was too nervous to remember- and the sorting ceremony began. Students were sorted into the four houses: Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. Harry didn’t really know what the differences between all the houses were, or how the sorting hat decided where to put someone. He just knew that while Ron was chanting “not Slytherin” on his left, Draco was chanting “please Slytherin” on his right. Harry felt torn, and he felt himself growing more and more nervous as the list dwindled down.  
 Before he knew it, Draco was being called to the stage. The hat wasn’t even fully on Draco’s head before it called out his house: Slytherin.  
“There’s not a witch or wizard who’s gone bad that wasn’t in Slytherin,” Ron informed him, and Harry’s stomach dropped. He knew he’d have people watching him already, and after years of constantly being blamed by the Dursleys for things he couldn’t explain, he didn’t want to be associated with the bad house.  
 However, Draco seemed rather pleased with his house. Harry watched him walk over to the table at the far side of the hall. He was beaming and introducing himself to everyone in his sight. He looked comfortable, like he was at home.  
 He was so busy watching Draco that he missed Professor McGongall calling his name. Draco turned to look at Harry, and his eyes lit up when he realized that Harry was looking at him too. He gave a small wave and Harry smiled. That’s when Harry noticed that the entire Slytherin table was looking at him. In fact, everyone in the Great Hall was looking at him. Even the Professors were leaning in their seats to get a better view. “You’re on, mate.” Ron gave him a small push toward the stage.  
 The whispering died down, and the hall became so quiet that you could hear each step Harry took. He sat down on the chair and McGonagall placed the hat on his head. Everyone in the room seemed to be holding their breath, awaiting the hat’s decision.  
  “Ah,” the hat said. “This is a hard one.” Harry wondered if the rest of the hall could hear how quickly his heart was beating. “There’s courage, definitely some kindness, intelligence, talent,” the hat continued. “You could do great things, young man, and there’s no better place for you to rise to your full potential than here at Hogwarts, but the question remains, which house would be the best place for you? What do you want?” Harry’s breath caught in his throat. No one had ever asked him that before. What did he want? He knew he wanted a home, a house he could call his family. He looked over at Ron and then the rest of Ron’s family at the Gryffindor table. Ron would definitely be placed there too, and he would have a home. His eyes drifted across the room to where Draco was watching him intently. There’s not a witch or wizard who went bad that wasn’t in Slytherin. That’s what Ron had said. Still, when Harry saw Draco giving him a thumbs up and smiling encouragingly, he couldn’t help but think…  
 “Oh, I see,” the hat whispered in his ear. “I know your heart’s desires now. That means there is only one house that is right for you, and that is...SLYTHERIN!”  
Harry’s eyes flashed around the room. Everyone continued to stare; no one said a word. Then suddenly there was clapping and cheering from the Slytherin table and the rest of the hall hesitantly joined in. Professor McGonagall removed the hat from his head, and Harry walked in the direction of his new house.  
 He took a seat next to Draco who clapped him on the back and said “I knew you’d be one of us. This year is going to be great.” One of us, Harry thought. He felt his shoulders slump as he immediately started to relax. It didn’t matter what anyone else thought: the Slytherins had already accepted him. Harry finally had a real home.  
~~~~~  
 It turned out that Harry’s theory about Draco Malfoy was right. He just wanted to make a friend, and it didn’t take long for Draco to start letting his guard down when it was just the two of them. And although Draco wasn’t thrilled about the idea at first, Harry even convinced him to befriend Ron Weasley.  
 Draco and Harry had a lot more in common than they originally thought. They were both looking for a safe haven with genuine friends, and the promise of finally finding one is what helped Draco ignore all the harsh comments about being a blood traitor from some of the other Slytherins. When it became obvious that Draco was more interested in Harry Potter than becoming the fierce leader the first-year Slytherins hoped for, Blaise Zabini quickly stepped up to take his place. To make sure Draco didn’t try to overthrow him, Blaise turned half the Slytherin house against him. However, the Slytherins that weren’t so stuck in old ways were more than happy to befriend Harry and Draco. It was one of the many things that made Harry realize that not all Slytherins were alike, and not all of them fit the bad stereotypes.  
 Draco would never admit it, but he was happy that the responsibility of being “leader” was off his shoulders; he was just happy in general.  
~~~  
 On Halloween night Draco and Harry sat next to each other in the Great Hall. They’d finished their meals, and opened up a box of jelly beans. Harry was absentmindedly picking out the yellow ones –Draco hated the yellow ones- while they discussed Halloween traditions in the muggle world. He had just asked Draco what he would want to dress up as, when Professor Quirrell barged in.  
 “TROLL!” He hollered, barreling down the center aisle. “Troll in the dungeons! Thought you ought to know.” He barely managed to finish his sentence before he collapsed to the ground. There was a moment of silence before the hall broke out in a panic. Harry and Draco were rocks in the rapid river of students hurrying to escape. They stayed planted in their spots, Draco looking at Harry, and Harry looking at the teacher’s table. He surprisingly found Snape, looking just as confused as the rest of the teachers.  
“I was sure this was his doing,” he muttered. Draco didn’t have to say he disagreed. Harry could feel his doubtful look. Ever since the first day of school, Snape had made Harry’s life a living hell, but he was always somewhat tolerant of Draco. Of course Snape would be Harry’s first suspect, and of course Draco would disagree.  
 “SILENCE,” Dumbledore called over the commotion. “If everyone would please stay calm,” everyone had stopped moving by now. When Dumbledore says stop, you stop. “Prefects will lead their houses back to their dormitories. Teachers will follow me to the dungeons.” The river started flowing again, but at a steadier pace. Draco and Harry gave each other a look before following the rest of the Slytherins out the door.  
 They heard Ron coming before they saw him. It seemed like he managed to step on the toes of all the other Slytherins while shoving his way toward them. He grabbed Draco’s arm first -which Draco instinctively tugged away- and then Harry’s. They stopped and faced him.  
 “It’s Hermione,” He said, eyes practically popping out of his head. “She’s in the girls’ bathroom.”  
 “Well this isn’t really the time for her to be powdering her nose, is it?” Draco asked sarcastically, but all three of them were already breaking away from the crowd and running in the direction of the bathroom. They were just a hall away from it, when Draco grabbed Ron’s and Harry’s arms and pushed them against a wall.  
 “Hey! What was that-“ Draco put a hand over Ron’s mouth before he could finish. Harry caught the warning in Draco’s eyes and slowly peaked around the corner. The troll stood at the end of the hall. He turned back to Draco as Ron took a peek.  
 Draco looked up at the ceiling half in disbelief and half in annoyance at their bad luck. “What do you think the chances are that it’s going-“  
 “IT’S GOING INTO THE GIRLS’ BATHROOM,” Ron finished for him, and then he was running down the hall again. The other two raced to catch up.  
 They heard the screams before they entered the room. Hermione was crawling on her hands and knees, just narrowly avoiding the swings of the troll’s club. Ron stood frozen in the doorway with a horrified look on his face. Harry moved past him into the room. He saw Hermione’s wand on the floor and raced over to pick it up. He saw the troll’s club coming at him from the corner of his eye, and following his first instinct, he grabbed on to it. Somehow, he ended up sitting on the troll’s shoulders.  
“Harry! What were you thinking?” Draco called, sounding more annoyed than worried, but Harry was too busy being jerked around by the troll to answer. Hermione was wandless, Draco reached for his, but Ron was already casting a spell.  
 “Leviosa,” He said, and the troll’s club lifted about its head. At this point, Harry was hanging upside down by his feet, preparing to dodge another swing of the club. Even from this angle he could tell that Draco was giving Ron an annoyed look, but he knew there was fear behind it too. He was becoming very familiar with the numerous looks of Draco Malfoy.  
 “Good going, Weasley. We’ve got the angry troll’s toy, but how do we stop it from bashing Harry’s head against the wall?”  
 “I’m sorry! I panicked.” Ron held up his hands in defense, and the spell was cut off, dropping the club on the troll’s head. The troll was immediately knocked out, and Harry went crashing down to the floor with it.  
 “Weasley! You genius!” Draco amended. He rushed over to help Harry up, and Ron made sure Hermione was alright. That’s when some of the Professors decided to make an appearance.  
 “What are you four doing in here?” McGonagall demanded. Harry looked around at the other three; he wasn’t sure what story they were planning to use.  
“It’s my fault, Professor,” Hermione spoke up. Apparently she’d decided on the truth. “I was using the restroom and I didn’t hear about the troll. They came to save me.” McGonagall’s eyes widened as Snape’s eyes narrowed.  
 “Draco Malfoy saving Hermione Granger?” He scoffed. “A likely story.”  
  Professor McGonagall ignored him. “Not many first years could face a mountain troll and live to tell the tale,” She said, facing Professor Quirrell. He just shook his head (even though all of him was already shaking). “Well, I have no choice,” Professor McGonagall turned back to the students “But to award each of you boys five points for your bravery.”  
 Snape moved to protest, but the motion filled his face with pain. Harry glanced down, just catching the long gash on his leg before he covered it up. When he looked at Draco, he was sure the other boy saw it too. Professor McGonagall let them go before the troll woke up again. They barely made it halfway down the hall before they burst into adrenaline induced laughter. The four of them were inseparable from that moment on.  
~~~  
 At the end of the school year, it was hardest for Harry to say goodbye to those three. Draco said his goodbyes to them on the train. He knew that his dad would have a heart attack if he saw him hugging Hermione and Ron at the station. Harry was surprised he hugged them at all.  
 At the beginning of the year, Draco was not a touchy person, and he wouldn’t be caught dead even speaking to someone like Ron or Hermione. It’s not easy to break bad habits, and you can’t change someone’s upbringing overnight, but throughout time Harry taught Draco that he didn’t always have to believe what his father taught him, and in return, Draco taught Harry that he didn’t have to believe what the Dursley’s said about him either.  
 Now, as the train pulled up to the station, Draco embraced Ron and Hermione like a brother and sister. They promised each other that they would write, and maybe even find a way to meet up later in the summer. Then Draco turned to Harry, and Harry threw his arms around his best friend.  
 “Promise you won’t forget about me,” Harry whispered. He felt Draco’s hold on him tighten.  
 “Who could ever forget about famous Harry Potter,” Draco teased. Harry pushed him away playfully, but Draco caught his hand, just like Harry had caught his on that first day. “Friends forever,” He promised. Harry smiled as he looked around at his three friends, and he knew he would spend this summer counting down the days until he could come back home.


	2. Year Two

It was dark outside, and the relentless breeze was biting at Harry’s nose and ears, but he ignored it. The wind was good. At least this way he could pretend it was the cold bringing tears to his eyes. He heard footsteps approaching from behind him, but he didn’t have to turn around; he already knew who it was. “What if they’re right?” he asked.  
“They’re not.”  
“But what if they are? I’m the only one who can talk to snakes, and I’m a Slytherin. That’s all the proof you need.”  
“So what if they are? It doesn’t matter.”  
Harry turned to face Draco. “It does matter,” he insisted.  
“Why does it have to? So what if you are the heir of Slytherin? You’re not the one doing this.” This. Harry almost flinched at the word. Mrs. Norris and Colin Creevey had already been petrified, and the entire school was convinced that Harry had tried to set a snake on Justin Finch-Fletchley.  
“What if I am somehow unconsciously doing it? I can never go back to the dueling club.”  
Draco took a few determined steps and closed the distance between them. “Would you stop with the bloody ‘what ifs’, Harry? I’m telling you it’s not you. It’s not who you are.” Draco was giving Harry one of his famous “death stares”. It was like he looked into your soul, and you wanted him to because it was like someone was finally seeing the real you. He’d gotten many of the girls in their house to do whatever he wanted with this stare, but the death stares didn’t really work on Harry anymore; he’d become immune over first year. There was something else that made it hard for him to look away. The night sky and twinkling stars made Draco’s eyes exceptionally grey.  
Before he knew it, Draco was leading him down a hallway. “I want to show you something,” Draco had said, and Harry just followed. Now they stood in front of one of the school’s trophy cases.  
Harry tried to seem interested, but he really didn’t know what they were doing there. “Thanks, Draco…this really cheered me up,” He said, trying to sound sincere. Harry couldn’t really see Draco through the dark, but he knew that the other boy was rolling his eyes.  
“No, you twat.” he put his finger on the glass, pointing at something inside. “Look here.” Harry leaned in –so close he could feel Draco’s breath moving his hair- to see what he was talking about. Inside, just barely visible from the light of Draco’s wand, was a plaque. Harry immediately knew what he was meant to see: James Potter: Chaser.  
“I have to try out,” he whispered immediately. He could see Draco’s reflection in the glass, and Draco flashed him a smile (the kind he reserved just for Harry).  
“I had a feeling you’d say that,” he replied.  
~~~~~  
“Harry Potter, the fastest wizard in the air!” Draco announced, as they walked down the hall. They had just come from Quidditch tryouts (there was only one open spot, after the Slytherin seeker was injured in the last match.) Draco and Harry both tried out, and Harry made the team. Draco couldn’t have been happier.  
He playfully rumpled Draco’s hair to get the other boy to stop embarrassing him. It worked like a charm since Draco was too busy fixing it to say anymore. It took months of begging and a heated argument after Harry hid Draco’s hair gel, but Harry finally convinced Draco to stop slicking his hair back. Harry thought it looked better this way, and Draco wasn’t exactly jumping at the opportunity to look more like his father these days.  
“You really were amazing, mate,” Ron agreed.  
“You both did great.” Hermione patted a stray hair onto Draco’s head, and he smiled at her. He’d had a weird soft spot for Hermione for a few months now. He called it a “natural respect for intelligence.” Harry was pretty sure Draco had a crush.  
Harry was just thinking of another brilliantly witty remark, when they turned the corner, and his smile instantly disappeared. The four friends stopped in their tracks; Hermione even let out a short gasp. Justin Finch-Fletchely and Nearly-Headless Nick were lying on the floor. They were both petrified.  
Harry felt his chest getting tighter as he stumbled backwards. This couldn’t be happening. Not Justin. After the first dueling club meeting, everyone will think this was Harry’s fault. What if it was his fault?  
Draco caught Harry’s arm and pulled him forward before he hit the wall. “Harry, come on. This wasn’t you. We were all with you all afternoon.” Harry knew he was right. He knew there was no way he could’ve done this with the three of them watching him, but as the hallway started to fill with students, he couldn’t ignore the accusing stares.  
~~~~~  
Harry was beginning to panic. He couldn’t find Draco anywhere. Hermione had already been petrified, and Harry couldn’t help but worry that the same thing had happened to Draco. He and Ron were just beginning to lose hope, when they heard the announcement.  
“All students are to return to their house dormitories at once; all teachers to the second floor corridor immediately.” Professor McGonagall’s voice rang out over the school. Ron and Harry glanced at each other before running in the direction of the second floor. They hid behind the corner as the teacher’s made their way down the hall. “As you can see, the heir of Slytherin has left another message. Our worst fear has been realized. A Student has been taken by the monster.”  
Harry peeked around the corner to read the message on the wall “HIS SKELETON WILL LIE IN THE CHAMBER FOREVER.” He was starting to feel sick to his stomach.  
“Who is it the monster’s taken, Minerva?” Madam Pomfrey asked.  
“Draco Malfoy.” Harry felt his heart stop. It was like all the air had been taken out of his lungs. The room started spinning, and he was sure he was going to be sick. He shook his head to clear it. No, he couldn’t break down right now. Draco needed him. He knew what he had to do. Professor Lockhart appeared, and Harry took this opportunity to run down the hall without the teachers hearing his footsteps. Ron quickly caught up with him.  
“Harry, stop. What are you going to do?” he asked, concern obvious in his voice.  
“It’s got Draco, Ron. It has my best friend. I’ll do whatever I have to.”  
~~~~~  
Harry couldn’t fight the urge to run to Draco the moment he saw his still body lying on the ground. His robes were soaked, his face was covered in dirt, his hair was a mess, and Harry swore to himself that if Draco was alive he’d never tease him about the way he was always fixing it again. “Draco.” He dropped to his knees and started shaking him. “Oh Draco, please don’t be dead. Please wake up. Come on, please-“ His voice broke, and he hadn’t even realized that he was crying until one of his tears fell from his face and on to Draco’s.  
“He won’t wake,” a voice said from the shadows. Harry turned his head, and saw Tom Riddle walking toward him. He was too focused on Draco to even consider how this could be possible.  
“Tom. Tom Riddle. What do you mean he won’t wake? He’s not-“  
“He’s still alive,” Tom confirmed. “But only just.” How was Tom so calm? Couldn’t he tell that Harry felt like the world was ending?  
Harry touched Draco’s hand. “He’s cold as ice. Come on Draco please don’t die. Wake up! Tom, you have to help me. There’s a Basilisk.”  
“It won’t come until it’s called,” He answered coolly. It was then that Harry realized Tom was holding his wand. He stood, and stepped in front of Draco.  
“Give me my wand, Tom.”  
“You won’t be needing it.”  
Harry was getting frustrated with his replies. “We have to get out of here. We have to save him.” He was only buying time at this point. He knew now that Tom wasn’t going to help him.  
“I’m afraid I can’t do that. See, as Draco grows weaker, I grow stronger.” Harry narrowed his eyes, and this seemed to encourage Tom. “Yes Harry, it was Draco who opened the Chamber of Secrets.”  
“No!” Harry cried defiantly. “He couldn’t. He wouldn’t.”  
“It was all Draco,” Tom insisted. “He did everything I told him to. Not that he knew what he was doing. He was in a kind of trance. It was all too easy for Lucius Malfoy to give the diary to his son, and then I took over.” Harry felt sick for what felt like the millionth time that day. He never liked Draco’s father. He knew there was something off about him, but would he really do this? To his own son?  
Tom continued to explain, but Harry was no longer listening. He was just trying to find a way to get Draco and himself out alive. Then, something Tom said caught his attention.  
“How did you escape with nothing but a scar while Lord Voldemort’s powers were destroyed?” He spat. Harry hadn’t even realized Tom had worked himself up so much.  
“Why do you care how I escaped? Voldemort was after your time.” Harry tried to match the withering expression on Tom’s face.  
“Voldemort is my past, present, and future.” Tom took Harry’s wand and wrote the words “Tom Marvolo Riddle” in the air. Harry knew what was about to happen. He knew who Tom really was even before he rearranged the letters. His eyes found their way back to Draco, as they so often did, and he silently promised to defeat Tom here and now, so at least Draco would have a chance to escape.  
~~~~~  
Harry stumbled through the water; sword in one hand, and Basilisk fang in the other. His vision was blurring and it was hard to think of anything other than the searing pain in his arm. He barely made it to Draco’s side before his knees gave out. He looked up at Tom, determined to stay conscious. He wasn’t done yet. He may have been dying, but Tom was still there. Draco still wasn’t safe.  
“I’m guessing you have little more than a minute to live.” Tom informed him. I could say the same about you, Harry thought. He pretended to reach for Draco’s hand, but instead took the diary. He held the fang above it, and the flicker of fear in Tom’s eyes was all the encouragement he needed. He repeatedly stabbed the fang into the book, and with a flash of light, Tom was gone.  
Draco’s eyes flew open, and he struggled to sit up. Harry let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. “Draco,” He whispered.  
“Harry!” Draco turned to face him. “It was me. I opened the chamber, but I swear- Harry you’re hurt.” Draco crawled over to where Harry was and looked down at his arm. Draco knew what it was, and he knew what it meant. He was too smart for his own good sometimes. When he looked up to meet Harry’s eyes, his own eyes were filled with tears. That was the first time Harry ever saw Draco Malfoy truly sad. Harry felt his own heart breaking at the sight, and for a moment, he thought that if he died, at least he would never have to see that devastated look on Draco’s face again. “Harry-“ He couldn’t even say that much without his voice breaking.  
“Don’t worry.” Harry tried to smile. It was a pathetic smile, but it was all he could manage. “You need to get yourself out. Follow the chamber, and you’ll find Ron.”  
Draco shook his head and opened his mouth to protest. That’s when they heard Fawkes flying overhead. The bird landed next to Harry, and started crying over his wound. It vanished. Draco and Harry looked at each other. They both knew what this meant. Neither of them said a word, but Draco dove on top of Harry and threw his arms around him. Everything was going to be okay.  
~~~  
Harry was standing in Dumbledore’s office, gripping his wand between his hands. Lucius Malfoy was only a few feet away, and Harry had to stop himself from trying to perform whatever curse he could manage on him. He glared at Lucius as Dumbledore calmly explained what had happened in the chamber.   
Lucius shifted uncomfortably when Dumbledore pulled out the diary. Dobby was pulling on Harry’s robes, trying to signal to him, but Harry already knew that all of this was Lucius’ fault. He would never forgive him for what he did to Draco.   
“The consequences for the one responsible for this would be...severe,” Dumbledore finished, giving Lucius a pointed look.  
“Well,” Lucius replied, “Let us hope that Mr. Potter will always be around to save the day.” He returned Harry’s glare, and that was all Harry needed to speak out for himself.   
“Don’t worry, I will be,” He said matter-of-factly, and feeling particularly brave he added, “And your son is my best friend, so I will always be around to save him too, sir.” Lucius nodded.   
“Come, Dobby. We’re leaving.” And with a wave of his cape, he walked out the door, kicking Dobby in front of him. Harry knew what he had to do. He asked Dumbledore if he could have the diary back, took off one of Uncle Dursley’s old socks, and ran after him.  
“Mr. Malfoy!” Harry called, catching up to him. “I think I have something of yours.” He shoved the diary into his hand.  
“Mine?” Lucius hissed. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”  
“Oh I think you do.” Harry could feel himself getting angry again. “I think you gave the book to Draco as a present at the beginning of the year.”  
“You do, do you?” Lucius shoved the book at Dobby. “Why would I purposely give something dangerous to my own son?”  
“That’s what I would like to know.”   
Lucius took a few threatening steps toward him. “Why don’t you prove it?” He whispered, knowing that Harry couldn’t. He walked away, and Harry smiled. After all, confronting Lucius wasn’t the real reason Harry had come out here.   
“Open it,” He whispered to Dobby, and Dobby instantly pulled back the pages to reveal the dirty sock.   
“Dobby?” Lucius called, slowing his walk.  
“Master has given Dobby a sock,” The house-elf said in disbelief.   
“What?” Lucius spun around. “I didn’t give-” He stopped when he saw the sock, a look of realization dawning on his face.   
“Master has presented Dobby with clothes,” Dobby continued. “Dobby is free.” Lucius turned his look of outrage on Harry, and Harry lifted his pant leg to reveal the missing sock.  
“You lost me my servant!” He spat, pulling out his wand and advancing on Harry, but Harry didn’t move. Dobby stepped in front of him and held out a hand.   
“You shall not harm Harry Potter.” Before he could react, Lucius went flying across the room, landing on the floor with a thud. He got to his feet and straightened his robes clearly embarrassed.   
“Your parents were-” But Harry wasn’t about to let him get away with insulting his parents too.   
“Actually, Mr. Malfoy, the hospital wing is that way.” He pointed in the opposite direction in which Lucius was walking earlier. “Thought you might want to visit your son before you left. Don’t want anyone thinking you don’t care about him, now do we?” Harry wasn’t thrilled about sending him to Draco after what he did, but he knew Draco needed to see that his father still cared, even if it was forced. He threw Lucius one last dirty look before turning on his heel to go find Ron and Hermione.   


 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you made it this far, congratulations! Remember to leave a comment telling me what you think :)


	3. Year Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> highlights from year 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the shorter chapter, I promise year four will make up for it :)

 Harry knew that Draco was avoiding him before they had even returned to school for the year. They  _ always _ rode the train together, they  _ always _ met at the platform, and they  _ always _ wrote to each other over the summer. This year, Harry had received two letters from Draco, he couldn’t find him on the platform, and when Harry got on the train he found Draco sitting in a full compartment next to Pansy  _ freaking _ Parkinson (Who’d had an annoyingly obvious crush on Draco since day one). After all of this  _ and _ the incident with the dementors on the train, Harry was borderline furious. If Draco didn’t want to talk to Harry anymore then fine, Harry was used to people avoiding him, but he could at least have the decency to give him an explanation.

 When Harry got into the dining hall, he sat down in his usual spot next to Draco –Harry was surprised the spot was even open- and he pretended like Draco wasn’t even there. He refused to believe he was acting childish. Blaise and his gang plopped down right across from them.

 “Is it true you fainted when you saw the dementors, Potter?” Blaise asked mockingly. That got Draco’s attention.

 “You- you did?” Draco turned hesitantly to face him.  _ How dare he look concerned,  _ Harry thought.

 “Now you want to talk to me?” Harry answered coldly. He had to admit that  _ that _ was a bit childish. Blaise and his gang, obviously having no fun in being ignored, decided to move away.

 “Come on lads, let’s let them have their couple’s squabble,” Blaise called.

 “Harry, can we talk later? Please?” Draco whispered, still not meeting his eyes. Harry was pretty sure only he could hear a hint of fear in Draco’s voice. What could Draco possibly be afraid of? Was this connected to why he was avoiding Harry? Draco started wringing his hands, it was his nervous tick. Suddenly, Harry thought he knew exactly what was going on.

~~~

 They were the first ones back to their room. Their other roommates were out with friends and they wouldn’t be back for a while. Draco was pacing; Harry was sitting. He found a particular piece of the carpet and focused on it. Harry couldn’t say he expected this. He understood it, but he thought at least his best friend would stay by his side at a time like this. Harry looked up when he noticed Draco had stopped pacing.

 “Harry I-“ Draco began, but Harry cut him off.

 “I know.”

 “You know?” Draco looked panicked and confused. How could he think that Harry wouldn’t know?

 “I know why you’ve been avoiding me. I didn’t know earlier in the summer, but I found out right before school started.”

 “Who told you?” Draco was sweating. Harry remained calm.

 “Well some guy on the Knight Bus, and then Mr. Weasley.” Draco looked dumbfounded.

 “Harry, what  _ are _ you on about?”

 “I know you’ve been avoiding me because of Sirius Black,” Harry blurted. “I know he’s dangerous, and I respect your decision to stay away from me. I don’t want you getting hurt either.”

“Harry no.  _ Oh god, no. _ ” Draco sat down next to Harry on the edge of the bed. They were so close, their arms and legs bumped together as they turned to face each other. “That’s not it at all.”

 “It isn’t?” Draco shook his head, and Harry let out a breath he didn’t even know he was holding. Draco looked at his lap, and started wringing his hands again. Very slowly, Harry reached over and placed his hand on top of Draco’s. He immediately felt the other boy relax.

 “Well if it isn’t that, what is it?” Harry spoke softly. Whatever this was, it was really bothering Draco.

 “Harry, I’m-I’m…gay.” Draco said at last. He refused to meet Harry’s eyes. Harry took his hand away from Draco’s and smacked his arm. Draco’s head snapped up and he looked at Harry with wide eyes.

 “What was that for?”

 “ _ That’s _ why you’ve been avoiding me? I thought you didn’t want to be my friend anymore!” Harry tried to sound angry, but he couldn’t stop the smile from spreading across his face.

 “I thought you wouldn’t want to be my friend if you knew!” Draco stated, already beginning to smile as well.

 “Are you crazy? I don’t care who you’re attracted to, Draco. We’ll always be friends. Always.”

The tension seemed to lift from the air as the boys embraced. 

 “Always,” Draco whispered in agreement.

 They stayed up all night, laying on Harry’s bed and whispering back and forth, to make up for the lost letters over the summer. Draco laughed for five straight minutes when Harry told him the story of what had happened to Aunt Marge. Harry didn’t realize until then how much he’d missed that sound.

~~~

 “I want everyone to picture the thing they fear the very most, and turn it into something funny.”

Harry, Draco, Ron, and Hermione looked at each other. They had just finished watching Neville face his fear, and now it was time for them to do the same. They got in line with the rest of the students, and Professor Lupin put on some lively music. Harry could tell that this was meant to be a fun lesson, but he couldn’t help but wonder what he would be facing when he got to the front. Would it be Voldemort? What could he possibly do to make Voldemort appear funny?

 “Riddikulus,” Ron said, and suddenly his spider started sliding around on roller-skates. Now it was Draco’s turn. Harry was so busy worrying about his fear, that he hadn’t noticed how nervous Draco was.

 The room was quiet as everyone waited to see what Draco Malfoy was most afraid of. Draco took one hesitant step forward and the boggart transformed into…Harry.

 Everyone in the room looked back and forth between the boggart Harry and the real one. Harry wasn’t sure what to think or how to feel about this. He was settling on slightly offended, when the boggart crossed its arms and gave Draco a cruelly condescending look.

 “It looks like the jokes over guys,” it said to Ron and Hermione. “We can stop pretending to be his friends now.” Harry was standing behind Draco; he couldn’t see his face, and he wasn’t sure he wanted to. “Did you really think we’d want to be friends with you? I’m the chosen one for crying out loud! I could be friends with anyone.” Draco raised his wand, his hand was visibly shaking. “But I can’t pretend anymore now that I found out you’re g-“ Harry stepped in front of Draco, successfully shutting up his evil clone before he could blurt out Draco’s secret. The boggart began to transform, but before it could finish taking shape, Professor Lupin stepped in front of Harry.

 Harry was grateful; this gave him an opportunity to run after Draco who was already out of the room and halfway down the hallway. Draco’s legs were a tad longer than Harry’s. He couldn’t catch up, and no matter how many times Harry called out, Draco wouldn’t slow down. Draco made his way through the castle, and outside the doors. Harry felt the chill hit him as soon as he stepped out. The cold was sharp and unforgiving, but it also wasn’t natural. The dementors circled the school, freezing everything in their path, and Harry realized that  _ that  _ was what his boggart would look like. He ignored the urge to turn around and hide inside where these things could never reach him. Instead, he sat on the steps with his best friend.

 “You must think I’m so pathetic.” Draco wouldn’t look at Harry as he wiped his eyes on his sweater sleeve.

 “No,” Harry said softly. “I think you’re extremely brave.”

Now Draco turned to face him, a look of doubt and confusion on his face. “What do you mean?”

 “I mean,” Harry looked into his eyes, his perfectly grey eyes. “There’s an entire world of evil out there. Voldemort, death eaters, those  _ fucking _ dementors,” He hardly ever swore, but this time it earned him a small smile from the boy next to him. “and your biggest fear is losing your friends.”

 “Well yeah,” Draco answered as if it were obvious. “You guys are the greatest people in my life.” Harry could feel himself smiling. Maybe it was awful that he was happy about this, but he finally had someone to relate to. His friends were the greatest people in his life too.

 “You know I’d never say any of those things, right?”

 “I know.” Draco nodded, and Harry put his hand on Draco’s shoulder.

 “And since I’m so great… you wouldn’t mind helping me with my potions homework, would you?” Draco pushed Harry’s hand away and both boys laughed.

 “Don’t push it, Harry.” And even though they were certain someone would come looking for them soon, they stayed outside a while longer, sitting quietly and being grateful for the other person’s presence.

~~~

 “He had to go Harry, you did the right thing.”

 Harry jumped at the sound of Draco’s hushed voice. He sat up in the chair he had pulled next to Draco’s hospital bed. Ron was sleeping on the other side of him, and Hermione had a chair pulled up to his bed. After the events of that night, it was a miracle that only two of them ended up in overnight care with curable injuries. 

 “I didn’t know you were awake.” Harry quickly wiped the tears from under his eyes before looking at Draco. He sighed at the look of pity in his friend’s eyes. 

 “I wasn’t,” Draco shrugged. “You did the right thing,” He repeated. Harry sighed.

 “I know that Draco, of course I know. If Hermione and I hadn’t gone back, he’d be dead. Buckbeak would be dead too, all because Blaise had to be a show off. We saved them. Everything is fine, the end.” 

 “Harry you’re always so dramatic,” Draco commented and Harry raised an arm to whack him, but Draco held up a hand to stop him. “I’m literally in a hospital bed. I get a free pass at teasing you tonight.”

 “Yeah well no one said you had to try to wrestle the wild dog off of Ron all by yourself,” Harry pointed out.

 “Well how was I to know that the wild dog would turn out to be your godfather?” Draco’s laugh faded when he saw the look on Harry’s face. “Come here,” He commanded. He moved over on the bed so that Harry could lay down next to him. Harry rolled his eyes. He secretly liked when Draco used his bossy voice, but he would never tell him that. He climbed onto the bed, careful not to hit Draco’s arm where he’d been cut. He put his head on the pillow and turned so that he was facing the other boy.

 “I say you’re dramatic,” Draco tried again, “because this isn’t the end, Harry. You will see him again one way or another. I will make it my personal mission to track down Pettigrew myself. Then I’ll clear his name and you two can live happily ever after.”

 “My knight and shining armour,” Harry teased. “You know I’d never let you go alone.” They fell into comfortable silence for a while. Draco watched Harry, Harry watched the light flickering in the lamp on the bedside table. Draco could see the light that was in Harry’s eyes dimming with every minute.

 “Stop it,” He finally said. Harry’s attention flickered back to him. “I won’t let you do this to yourself. I know what you were thinking about.”

 Harry sighed, knowing there was no point in hiding it. “I was so close,” He whispered, turning onto his back to look at the ceiling. “I was so close to leaving Privet Drive and never looking back. Think of the life I could’ve had with him. He’s the closest connection I have to my parents, Draco.” Harry’s voice broke when he said his name, and Draco felt his heart breaking along with it. It wasn’t until he felt the wetness on the pillow that he realized he was crying. They both were crying. 

 “You know I wish I could get you out of there. I would take you back to my house every summer, but-”

 “Your dad hates me,” Harry finished.

 “That makes two of us,” Draco joked, but Harry could tell that he meant it. He turned back to look at him, and wiped the tears that were falling down his cheeks. He suddenly realized how lucky he was. Out of all of the kids at Hogwarts, Draco had chosen to be his best friend. He was the only person who understood him. The only one who truly understood his hatred of summer vacation, because Draco hated it to. They were both from different kinds of broken homes, but they had each other, and that was all they really needed. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Don't forget to leave comments telling me what you think. Let me know if I should even bother continuing this :)


	4. Year Four Part One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Highlights from year four (part one)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a little shorter because I had to break year four into two parts. It's just too big and there are sooooo many possibilities for this year. I hope you're all as excited as I am.

 There were only two people in the entire school that believed that Harry hadn’t put his own name in the goblet of fire. Those two people were Draco and Hermione; Ron currently wasn’t talking to him. 

 However, there was only  _ one _ person in the entire school who was surprised to hear Harry’s name being called. That person was Harry. Even Cedric Diggory wasn’t caught off guard. When Fleur asked him what he thought, he just replied with “I’m just surprised his name wasn’t called first.” Harry didn’t like being the center of attention, and he certainly didn’t like that people thought he  _ tried _ to be the center of attention.

 Through all of this, Draco had been by Harry’s side. The Triwizard Tournament wasn’t what they were arguing about now. In fact, Harry wasn’t sure why they were arguing or how it even started. He was just talking about all the places where they could possibly bump into Cho and then…

 Draco slammed his dresser drawer shut and stood up. “I am so tired of going to Hogsmeade and following Cho every bloody time in the hopes that you can find some sorry excuse to talk to her.”

 Harry was on his feet instantly.

“Well  _ I’m _ tired of you hating on Cho all the time! You don’t even know her!”

 “Well neither do you and you won’t shut up about her.”

 Harry could feel his face heating up, and he hated it. He crossed the room to where Draco stood. At this moment he was secretly happy that he’d grown a few inches taller than Draco over the summer. “What’s your problem?” He asked.

 “You. Cho. Both of you. I just want to go to Hogsmeade and hang out with my friends for once. I wish you would realize that Cho isn’t interested in you so you could stop thinking about her.” Harry already knew that –Cho liked Cedric- but it hurt a whole lot more coming from Draco.

 “You mean the friends that I forced you to make first year? I’m a champion, Draco. I have a lot more on my mind than just Cho Chang and hanging out at some stupid village with you guys.”

 It was pathetic and a low blow, Harry knew that, but he was grasping at straws trying to hurt Draco the way Draco was hurting him. He never meant for it to take this turn. He hated that Draco had this much power over him, hated that his chest was growing tighter by the second, like all of the air was being sucked out of his lungs, just at the thought of Draco being mad at him. His heart skipped a beat when he saw Draco’s face gloss over, and he realized that he couldn’t tell what his friend was thinking anymore. Sure Draco wore this cold expression daily, but never when he was talking to Harry. He saw the determined glint in Draco’s eyes, and he knew the other boy wasn’t backing down.

 “Oh I’m so sorry. I forgot. The Chosen One is way too significant and busy. He doesn’t have time for any of us, especially not those he calls his friends.” Harry tried to respond, but Draco cut him off. “If Cho is so important to you, go be friends with her. I hope she’s worth it,  _ Potter _ .” Harry flinched. He felt like he’d just gotten kicked in the chest. Draco had never called Harry that before. It sounded so cold coming from him, and it hurt a hell of a lot more than anything Draco said about Cho. Harry felt his knees shaking, and when Draco left the room, slamming the door behind him, Harry sank to the ground.

~~~~~

 Hermione and Ron had waited for Draco and Harry outside of the school, but Harry never came. They went into Hogsmeade with Draco, but he wasn’t really there either. He rarely spoke, he was always staring into space, and he never smiled. Hermione knew what was happening; Ron was a bit more oblivious.

 Now as they sat in the bleachers waiting for the first task to begin, Hermione was trying not to roll her eyes. Draco and Ron were practically sitting on top of each other, both performing their nervous tics. Ron was stress eating, and Draco was wringing his hands. Hermione found their arguments with Harry childish and pointless. Neither boy had spoken a word to Harry in weeks, but both were scared to death of losing him.

 Hermione –who had been talking to Harry- wasn’t as confident about this task as she wished she could be. He was a mess without his two friends, though he tried not to let it show. Hermione knew he was constantly distracted because of it, and she often caught him watching the two boys from across the room. But Hermione also knew that boys were dumb and stubborn and that they would make up eventually, but they may need a little push first. 

 The crowd’s cheers went from a whisper to a roar as the first champion came out of the tent and prepared to take on their dragon. One after one, the champions came out of the tent and successfully retrieved their egg from their dragon. Hermione saw Ron and Draco visibly relaxing. She even felt calmer herself, that is, until she saw Harry’s dragon. 

 “He’s done for,” she whispered, leaning forward on the bench. She heard Draco’s quiet gasp, and turned to face him. “I mean…he’ll be fine. He can do this.” Draco didn’t look convinced.

 Harry walked out of the tent and the crowd erupted in cheers again. Hermione, Ron, and Draco were all on the edge of their seats. Harry took one shakey step forward and raised his wand.

 “Come on, Harry,” Hermione whispered. She felt Draco take hold of her hand and she gave his a reassuring squeeze.

 The spell Harry and Hermione had been practicing for weeks worked and Harry was able to summon his broom. Hermione left out a breath of relief. Harry mounted his broom and took off. The dragon followed him, breaking the chain that was restraining it, and blowing fire at Harry. Everyone in the audience stood up looking for any sign of him. They heard loud crashes coming from the direction of the school; Draco’s grip on Hermione tightened. The waiting was horrifying. They had no idea what could be happening; if something happened to Harry, none of them would know. Hermione had to stop herself from imagining the worst. They were just about to call off the task and send someone after Harry, and then he was back. Draco let go of Hermione and he and Ron started cheering with the rest of the audience. Hermione had to laugh at the adorably relieved look on his face. Harry scooped up his egg, and the crowd went wild.

 After the first task, Hermione didn’t have to convince the boys to come congratulate Harry with her. They all went to meet him outside the champions’ tent, but when they got there someone was already talking to him. Cho was enthusiastically congratulating him, Harry’s face was beat red. When they finally reached him, Cho excused herself, and Harry and Ron immediately wrapped their arms around each other in a hug. When they broke away, Harry looked around at all of the people near them. Hermione could tell he was trying not to look disappointed. “Draco?” he asked.

 “Right here,” Hermione started to say, but when she looked around them, Draco was gone.

~~~~

 Harry was more than happy to have Ron talking to him again. He needed the support; the tasks would only get harder from here. It was great having Ron back, but he couldn’t help but miss Draco. Why hadn’t he come to see him after the task? Didn’t he care that Harry could’ve died? It was really rude of him to blow Harry off like that, but Harry really didn’t care. He just wanted his best friend back. Sometimes he almost got up the nerve to apologize. Sometimes he almost forgot his anger all together…almost.

 After the first task, things seemed to settle down. There was plenty of time before the second task, and the whole school was buzzing with excitement after the announcement of the Yule Ball. Things were relatively normal, except for the fact that Harry was still avoiding his best friend. He went to class like normal, at meal times Hermione and Ron switched back and forth between him and Draco, and Draco was never in their room when Harry went to bed. Harry couldn’t help but wonder where he was or who he was with. 

 Harry, Ron, and Hermione had free time before lunch. They used to use this time to visit Hagrid or lay around the school grounds just talking. Draco was always there with them. But now he wasn’t, and it left them feeling empty. Could they still do the same things without him?

They walked out into the courtyard to find a place to sit, and that’s where they saw him. Draco was sitting under their usual tree, surrounded by Durmstrang boys, and they were obviously flirting with him. Draco didn’t appear to mind at all. Harry clenched his fist. He felt his anger being refueled. Apparently it was fine for them to continue on without Draco. He sure didn’t waste anytime moving on. 

 “Harry, maybe we should-“ Hermione started, but she stopped and stared at the tree again. Harry turned back around to see what she was looking at.

 Nine of the Durmstrang boys were lined up beside each other; one of them was standing next to Draco. The nine boys all saw some signal and lifted their shirts at the same time. Harry moved closer to get a better look. Each of the nine wizards had green letters painted on their chest. All together they spelled out “Y-U-L-E-B-A-L-L-?” Then one with the question mark on his chest held out a rose to Draco.

Harry hadn’t even thought about finding a date to the ball yet. It wasn’t supposed to happen until Christmas. Why was this guy asking Draco so far in advance? And why was Draco hugging him all of a sudden? Did he actually say  _ yes?  _ Why was Harry so angry about this? Why did his chest feel so tight? It must be jealousy, right?

Yeah. Jealousy. He was jealous that Draco got a date to the dance before him. That had to be it.

 Draco turned and looked in their direction, but Harry was already walking away. He was determined to find a date to the stupid Yule Ball that was still weeks away.


	5. Year Four Part Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Highlights from year four part two

_  “Please tell me you are not wearing that ungodly blue bow tie,” Draco called from the bathroom. _

_ “I’m not,” Harry called back defensively, quickly taking off the blue tie and throwing it across the room. _

_  They were getting ready to meet their dates for the Yule Ball. Draco was still going with that bloke from Durmstrang (Harry had been told a million times that his name was William, but he refused to call him that), and Harry had found a date too. He was going to ask Cho at first, but now every time he looked at her he was just reminded of the awful fight between him and Draco. He ended up asking Ginny Weasley instead, and she seemed more than willing to go. _

_ Harry studied his reflection as he waited for Draco. He was still very thin. Normally by this time he’d had enough Hogwarts food to put some meat on his bones, but he’d been too stressed about the tournament and the fight to eat much. You could see his ribs, and his arms were way too tiny. He looked like a child in his dress robes. _

_  “Alright, how do I look?” Harry heard the bathroom door open, and then Draco was standing in front of him, his arms spread slightly so that Harry could get a good look at his outfit. He was the complete opposite of Harry. His dress robes fit him perfectly, his hair was neat and tidy; not a single strand out of place. He looked different. He looked older. Harry couldn’t understand why his mouth was suddenly dry. _

_  “Wow Draco…you…you look amazing,” Harry said genuinely. Draco gave him an annoyed look. _

_  “That’s a line straight from one of your cheesy muggle movies, isn’t it?” _

_  “Can’t I just have a cheesy muggle movie moment with my best friend?” Harry grinned. _

_  “Not a cheesy romantic muggle movie moment. For all I know, you could actually be flirting with me.” _

_  “You wish,” Harry joked, his cheeks turning red. Was he blushing? Why was he blushing? _

_  “You’re not my type,” Draco joked back, turning away to look in the mirror. Harry looked at his reflection, and he swore he could see Draco blushing too. Then Draco’s eyes lit up as he spotted something in the mirror. _

_  “Ha! You were wearing the tie!” He picked it up off the floor and hung it up in the air giving Harry an “I knew it” look. Harry tried to think of an excuse, but he just ended up laughing. Draco joined in. _

 Harry woke up in a sweat. He was breathing heavily and his cheeks were red from blushing. He turned to his right and saw that Draco was fast asleep in his own bed. Harry’s heart rate began to slow and his chest began to hurt. He hadn’t actually made up with his best friend; it was only a dream. 

~~~

 Harry was not having any fun. He couldn’t dance, so he avoided it entirely. The only time his feet even touched the dance floor was when the champions were required to dance with their dates. He spent the rest of his time sitting and watching. Ginny gave up on convincing him to dance, and went to dance with Neville instead. Ron’s date- Padma Patil- ditched him too. He sat next to Harry, and together they watched Hermione and Draco enjoying themselves in a group of Durmstrang boys.

 Harry and Ron were both miserable. Harry wasn’t as unobservant as so many people thought he was. He knew why Ron was upset; he was jealous. Ron and Hermione had this weird thing going on for a while now. Sometimes it was painful to even be around them because of how awkward they were. The one thing Harry couldn’t figure out was why he was so upset. He definitely didn’t have feelings for Hermione, so why was it bothering him that she and Draco were having such a good time? He guessed it was hard watching two of his best friends enjoying themselves, knowing he wasn’t welcome to join in.

 Ron talked nonstop, and it was mostly about Viktor. What did she see in him? He wasn’t  _ that _ great. Harry mostly tuned him out. He couldn’t stop watching Draco and  _ William.  _ William was laughing every five seconds –which was understandable, Draco was a funny guy- but he was being so over the top about it, and he kept inching closer and closer. He was obviously flirting. It was annoying Harry beyond belief. He clenched and unclenched his fists as they danced around the room. That’s when the first slow song came on. William winked at Draco, Draco looked away bashfully, William pulled him closer- and then Harry was moving. He’d crossed the room before he even knew what he was doing.

 “Harry, what’s going on?” Draco asked when Harry got to them. Harry must’ve looked mad, Draco looked concerned.

 “Nothing.” Harry tried to cool off. He tried not to show what he was really thinking.  _ What was he thinking? _ “Can we just- can I just talk to you outside for a second?” He managed to say. Draco nodded, still looking concerned, and excused himself. He followed Harry out of the room and out of the castle entirely. He stopped on the patio outside the ballroom, and faced away from Draco.

It was cold outside. It had just started to snow. Harry felt himself relaxing as a few flakes melted against his face. This was just what he needed to cool off, and now that he was cool, he finally realized what he had done. How could he take Draco away from his date like that? Why did he do it? He was about to apologize for everything and beg for his friend’s forgiveness, but when he turned around, he felt like he was literally melting.

 Snowflakes caught in Draco’s already white hair, his cheeks were turning red, and Harry could see his breath on the cold air. The moonlight danced in his grey eyes.

 How long had he wanted to kiss Draco Malfoy?

 “Harry, what is it? You’re scaring me,” Draco took a step closer, and Harry took a step back. If he came any closer, Harry wasn’t sure he could stop himself from kissing him, and that would ruin everything. Instead, he waved Draco away.

 “It’s nothing. Go back to William. I just needed some fresh air.” He tried to smile, and Draco raised his eyebrows. Harry knew it was a pathetic excuse. They hadn’t talked in months and now Draco was supposed to believe that Harry pulled him out here for some fresh air? Harry hated everything about the situation. Hated the awkward silence that hung in the air, hated that they couldn’t just make up, hated that Draco was so concerned even though Harry had been nothing but awful to him. More than anything, he hated that now he knew what he felt for Draco was the farthest thing from hate, and there was nothing he could do about it.

 “Okay… but come get me if you need anything, alright?” He turned and walked away, still looking confused.

 Harry let out a breath, and started walking. He barely made it to a bench before he couldn’t stand any longer.

 How long had he wanted to kiss Draco Malfoy?

~~~

  Harry couldn’t believe he was breathing. It wasn’t perfect, and his lungs stung from the murky lake water, but he could  _ breathe _ and that was all that mattered. Although it did help that he could also see and his fingers and toes were growing webbs so he could move.

 Neville was a genius. Without him, Harry would be sinking (Figuratively in the competition, and literally to the bottom of the lake). He was the only one who’d helped Harry prepare the night before. Hermione was supposed to be with him that night while Ron was with Draco, but Hermione was nowhere to be found. Harry still wasn’t talking to Draco. In fact, Draco was avoiding him even more after what happened at the Yule Ball; he wasn’t there when Harry went to bed or when he woke up that morning.

   Now, he was in the middle of the second task, time was running out, and he had no idea what he was looking for. He was supposed to be looking for the most important thing to him, which had apparently been stolen, but what could they possibly have taken from the boy who barely had anything?

 Harry had been swimming for what he guessed was half an hour. He’d already gotten lost in an underwater forest, he was attacked by sea creatures, and he still hadn’t found anything. He was starting to lose hope, and that’s when he heard it. It was the same singing he heard coming from the golden egg, and it was close. He felt his heart rate speeding up as he raced toward the sound.

 He didn’t know what he expected to see when he got there, but it certainly wasn’t the scene that was laid out in front of him. They had taken  _ people,  _ not objects. The people were tied to the ground and floating as far as their ropes would allow, completely unconscious. There were four of them; one for each champion (So that meant Harry was the first to arrive). A blond girl who looked a lot like Fleur, Cho Chang, Hermione… and Draco.

 Seeing his best friend, Harry was finally able to understand. He may not have much in his life, most of his clothes were too big or too worn out, and he considered Hogwarts more of a home than the one on Privet Drive, but none of that mattered; not if he had Draco. He couldn’t believe he’d almost ruined the only sure thing in his life. He almost lost his best friend (and over a girl!). When they got out of this, Harry planned to apologize over and over until Draco wished he would shut up. He had to resist the urge to hug Draco right there. Instead, he decided to win the task. 

 He was just about to untie Draco, when he remembered the others. Where were the other champions? Could he get everyone out if they didn’t show up? He reached out to touch Hermione, but the merpeople blocked him. They weren’t going to let him take the people who weren’t meant for him, and Harry wasn’t going to leave them behind. He stayed next to Draco and waited. Eventually, Viktor and Cedric came to collect Hermione and Cho, but Fleur never showed. Harry knew time was running out. The last few lines of the clue played in his mind  _ “But past an hour, the prospect's black, too late, it's gone, it won't come back”,  _ and he knew he couldn’t risk it; he had to get Draco and the little girl out.

 The merpeople didn’t even try to stop him this time. Maybe they sensed his desperation, or maybe they knew there was no way Harry could make it to the surface with both of them in tow. With one last spark of hope, Harry pushed Draco and the girl up and started to swim after them, but something grabbed his ankle. He was being pulled back down, his gills disappearing, he hadn’t tasted fresh air in an hour; he was going to drown. The edges of his vision were starting to grow dark, and then he remembered the wand in his pocket. He felt stupid for momentarily forgetting he could do magic.

 One quick spell later, and he was soaring up. Up through the water, up through the air, and all the way back onto the deck where the audience waited. He was instantly surrounded by people congratulating him and telling him they heard about what he did in the lake and they all seemed to think it was extremely brave. Hermione almost knocked him over when she hugged him, and Harry wrapped her up in a tight embrace. He was glad Krum was good at his job, he couldn’t imagine losing her. 

 She and Ron were talking animatedly about Harry’s place in the competition, but he wasn’t listening; he didn’t care. He was scanning the crowd. He had to find Draco. He had to apologize. He had to-

 He felt a tap at his shoulder.

 He turned around to find a dripping wet Draco. He was shivering, and his lips were slightly blue. He looked nervous, and he wouldn’t meet Harry’s eyes. “I-I was at the bottom of the lake,” he started. “Hermione tells me that means I’m the most impor-“

 Harry couldn’t take it anymore. He threw his arms around Draco and buried his face in his friend’s shoulder. Draco had been taken by surprise, but he quickly hugged him back, and Harry felt him relax. “Of course you are!” Harry told him. He felt like he was going to cry; he was so happy they were talking again, but it was more than that. It was like a piece of him had been missing for months and he just now got it back. It was like he could finally breathe again. “I’m so sorry.” Harry knew people were looking at them, but he didn’t care. Let them stare.

 “I’m sorry too,” Draco whispered, and his arms tightened around Harry. It was a while before either of them let go.

 For the rest of the school year, they were inseparable. Draco basically forgot about the Durmstrang boys, and at times Harry was able to force himself to forget the way his heart leapt whenever Draco smiled at him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! If you're reading this, why not leave a comment and tell me what you think about the story so far? Is it worth continuing? Feedback is ALWAYS appreciated :)


	6. Year Five Part One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Highlights from year five part one

The floorboards creaked underneath Harry’s feet as he followed his gang of rescuers deeper into the quiet house. The last few hours had been a blur. He’d left Privet Drive with Mad-eye Moody (the real one this time), and now he was standing in the hallway of a house that had slid into appearance right in front of his eyes. The house was old, dusty, and dark. Harry had no idea what he could be doing in a place like this, but he’d learned that it was better not to ask questions (no one ever answered him anyway).

 The group made its way toward a door, and Harry could hear whispering on the other side. Mad-eye and Tonks pushed through the door. Harry caught a glimpse of Sirius sitting at a table, and his godfather smiled at him before Mrs. Weasley came through the door shut it behind her.

 “Harry dear,” she said, embracing him. “It’s so good to see you.” She must’ve seen the questions in his eyes, because when she pulled back she said “No time to explain. Straight upstairs. First door on your left.” Harry knew better than to argue.

 He walked up the stairs, growing more and more confused with each step he took. A million questions were running through his mind. What was this place? What were they all doing here? Why had no one contacted him with any news over the summer?

 He found the room Mrs. Weasley was talking about, and pushed it open. Before he’d taken one step in the room, he was engulfed in a hug. “Harry,” Hermione said in his ear. He hugged her back, and he could see Ron over her shoulder. He was about to start grilling them with questions, when Hermione pulled away, and he saw Draco. Harry felt his heart speeding up.

He had managed to get through the rest of the year last year without letting anyone know what had been going through his mind the night of the Yule Ball. He watched silently (as much as he hated it) as Draco spent the year with his first boyfriend. Harry had held his tongue. Literally. Sometimes he had to  _ bite _ his tongue to stop himself from kissing his best friend. But all of this self-control stuff was going to become impossible if Draco kept looking more and more handsome each time Harry saw him.

 Draco and Harry had been going back and forth over the years, but this year Draco was taller, and Harry had a feeling it was going to stay that way. He was much taller than last year; much thinner than last year too. His hair was ungroomed, his clothes were untucked and wrinkled, and it looked like he hadn’t slept in days. He was a complete mess…and completely irresistible. Harry locked eyes with him, and that’s when he noticed how red they were. It looked like he’d been crying.

 Draco didn’t say anything, he just crossed the room in two long strides and Harry opened his arms. Hugging Draco was different than hugging Hermione; it was different than hugging anyone actually. It was hard to explain, but when Harry hugged Draco it was like he finally felt complete; like Harry was always missing a part of himself unless he was with Draco. It reminded him that he did have a reason for all of this fighting; that he did have a home.

 They parted sooner than Harry would’ve liked and he got a closer look at Draco’s bloodshot eyes. It only then occurred to Harry to wonder what Draco was doing there. He never spent the summers with any of them. His dad would never let him. So why was he here now?

He looked over at Ron and Hermione who looked like they were expecting him to start yelling at them. Harry, however, completely lost all his anger the minute he saw Draco, and he couldn’t find a reason to be mad. He was just confused.

 “This is the headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix,” Hermione started cautiously. “It’s a secret society. Dumbledore formed it back when they first fought You-know-who.”

 “That’s nice,” Harry replied. Hermione and Ron gave him weird looks.

 “We would’ve told you sooner, but Dumbledore made us swear not to tell you anything,” Ron continued.

 “Okay,” Harry answered. He knew they were growing more and more concerned with each response, but he was too distracted to reply. More and more questions controlled his thoughts; he felt like his head might explode. Why was Draco crying? Why was he here? Why didn’t Dumbledore want them to tell him anything?

 “Are you alright?” Draco spoke softly, but it was still enough to clear all of Harry’s thoughts and help him focus. Harry mentally face-palmed.  _ He  _ should be asking  _ Draco  _ that question. “We overheard them talking about the dementor attack, and now you’re acting weird.”

 “Oh yes, the dementor attack!” Hermione exclaimed like she had just remembered. “I’ve looked into it Harry, they simply can’t expel you- _ are _ you alright?” She took a step closer to him, and Harry shook his head, still a little disoriented. He wasn’t going to get any answers standing there lost in space. He wanted to know everything. Just then, he heard a loud POP, and Fred and George were sitting next to him.

 “Nice to see you Harry,” Fred smiled at the startled look on Harry’s face. “If you four are done catching up,” He started.

 “We have something a lot more interesting for you to hear,” George finished.

 Harry was nowhere near done catching up, but he decided to follow them anyway. He could interrogate his friends later. As the others left, Ron turned toward him. He whispered something to Harry, answering at least some of his questions, before leaving the room.

“He’s been fighting with his dad again.”

~~~~~

 “This may be the craziest thing you guys have  _ ever  _ pulled off,” Harry told his friends. They were walking across the bridge at Hogwarts, returning from Hogsmeade where Draco, Ron, and Hermione had just convinced about thirty students to take Defense Against the Dark Arts lessons from Harry. He didn’t expect anyone to show up to the meeting, let alone sign up.

 “Us?” Hermione asked. “That was all you, Harry. They listened to you.” Harry could hear the excitement in her voice, and he couldn’t help but smile.

 “Right.” Harry walked ahead, his friends following close behind. “First we need to find a place to practice; a place where Umbridge won’t find us.”

 “The Shrieking Shack?” Ginny suggested.

 “Too small.”

 “The Forbidden Forest?” Hermione asked. That earned her a strange look from Ron.

 “The Chamber of Secrets.” Draco spoke up, and the group stopped to face him. He looked nervous under all of their stares. “Well it’s just… Harry’s the only one who can get in there, right?”

 “You’re a genius, Draco.” Hermione informed him. Harry was in awe of his best friend. Harry himself never would’ve thought of the Chamber, but Draco always was the clever one.

 “I agree,” Harry said. Draco met his eyes, and flashed Harry a crooked grin.

 “What happens if Umbridge does find us?” Ginny asked. The group continued walking, but Harry let them pass so he could walk next to Draco.

 “Who cares?” Hermione was leading them now. “I mean…It’s sort of exciting, isn’t it? Breaking the rules.”

 “Who are you and what have you done with Hermione Granger?” Ron asked, earning a laugh from everyone.

 “Anyway,” Hermione smirked. She was practically glowing with confidence. “At least we know one positive thing that came from today.”

 “What’s that?” Harry asked.

 “Cho couldn’t take her eyes off you, could she?” Everyone turned to look at Harry. Even Draco was waiting for his reaction.

 “Oh,” Harry replied coolly, meeting Draco’s gaze. “I’m kind of over that.” He wasn’t sure if it was the cold or what he had said, but Draco’s cheeks were most definitely turning red.

~~~

 Harry bolted up in his bed. He was completely drenched in sweat and he couldn’t seem to catch his breath no matter how hard he tried. Before he knew it, his bed curtans were being pushed aside and someone was climbing into the bed next to him.

 “Another nightmare?” Harry felt Draco’s hand on his back and he was finally able to calm down. He slid down into the bed, laying on his side so that he was facing Draco. He didn’t even need his glasses to see him when he was that close. Draco and Harry had taken turns climbing into eachothers beds since firstyear. Whenever they had a nightmare or just couldn’t sleep, the other one was always there in an instant. It felt natural, comforting, knowing that they would always be there for each other. However, Harry couldn’t ignore the fact that his heart was racing at the proximity. He was aware of Draco’s hand on his shoulder like he would be aware of a fire burning a hole through it. 

 “Not another nightmare,” Harry whispered. “The same one.”

 “The Department of Mysteries again?” He could hear the concern in Draco’s voice and it bothered him. This repeated nightmare was already scary enough without his friends being scared for him. He decided to change the subject.

 “Why were you awake?” He asked Draco. 

 “Same as you.”

 “Nightmare? Why didn’t you wake me up?”

 “You’ve been sleeping less and less lately.” Draco shrugged. 

 “So have you.” Harry reached up a hand to trace the dark marks under Draco’s eyes. Silence fell over them and they could hear the rythmic breathing of their sleeping roomates. Harry continued to run his thumb over Draco’s cheeks, and Draco closed his eyes.

 “Was it about your father again?” He asked at last. Draco sighed and Harry dropped his hand. “He’s not going to find out about you being gay, and even if he does, he wouldn’t hurt- he wouldn’t do anything bad. He wouldn’t even kick you out, your mother wouldn’t let him.” Draco took deep breathes and Harry could feel each one blowing against his face. 

 “What if he does?” Draco’s voice was shaky, and Harry knew he wasn’t worried about just getting kicked out. 

 “He wouldn’t,” Harry said sternly. “And if he did, I’d-”

 “You’d what, Harry? Hex him? We both know that would not play out in your favor.” Harry could practically feel Draco rolling his eyes, but he also knew he was smiling. Harry smiled too. 

 “Hey, you’re talking to the leader of Dumbledore’s Army here. I could take him.” The bed shook with Draco’s silent laughter. Harry almost laughed too at the thought of him fighting Draco’s dad. “What I was going to say,” Harry tried again, “was that I would have to run away with you. No more dads and no more Dursleys.” Draco grinned as his eyes fluttered closed. Harry could barely keep his eyes open either. 

 “One day,” He heard Draco whisper. Neither of them had another nightmare that night. 

~~~

 It was the night before Christmas. Harry was staying at the headquarters of the Order with the Weasleys; Draco and Hermione went home to their parents for the holidays. There was a loud creak in the corner of the room that Ron and Harry were sharing, the old house was always making its own noises, but this sounded different. Harry woke up just as a cold breeze passed through the room, and he heard more creaking getting louder and louder as it got closer to his bed. Someone was in the room. Harry was facing the wall and he didn’t dare turn around to see who it was.

 Suddenly wide awake, he grabbed his wand that was resting in his pocket, and waited for the intruder to get closer. His grip tightened around the wand as the person stopped in front of his bed. Harry was about to turn around and attack when he heard the person whispering his name. “Harry,” They said. “Harry, wake up.” Harry recognized the voice in an instant. He turned around to see Draco Malfoy standing over him. Even in the dark Harry could tell that Draco had been crying again.

 He put a finger to his lips and pointed to the bed where Ron was sleeping. Draco nodded in understanding. Harry grabbed the blanket off his bed with one hand, and gently took Draco’s hand with his free one. They had never really held hands before, and Draco’s hand was freezing, but Harry didn’t really mind the cold. He had trouble concentrating on anything except his hand as he led Draco out of the room. It felt like every nerve in Harry’s hand was awake and tingling, and Harry didn’t want it to stop.

 He silently led Draco all the way up to the attic of the house where he was sure no one was staying, and no one would hear them. The minute he closed the door, Draco let go of his hand.

“Draco what happened?” But instead of answering his question, Draco threw his arms around him. He started crying again. Harry could feel the silent sobs wracking his body, and Harry felt like he might start crying too. He hated seeing Draco this way. He hated the fact that his bestfriend was hurting and there was nothing he could do about it. And it physically hurt him when Draco was in pain; it felt like someone had stabbed him in the chest.

 Harry realized that Draco wasn’t just shaking from crying, and he could see that his trembling lips were turning blue from the pale moonlight shining through the small window. He pulled away long enough to wrap the blanket around both of them. They settled on the floor and sat there for a long time. Neither of them talked; they just sat with their heads leaning against each other, and Draco continued to cry. After a while, when Draco finally composed himself, he spoke.

 “He kicked me out,” His voice was filled with pain and anger. “And it wasn’t even because of the gay thing. He said until I was ready to become a Death Eater he didn’t want to see me in the house. Said I was a huge disgrace to the Malfoy name.” Harry looked at Draco, and he saw the face of a defeated boy; the face of a boy who had just lost his family. And it was then that Harry knew what the stabbing pain in his chest was. This is what heartbreak felt like. His heart was breaking for Draco Malfoy.

 “Draco I-,” Harry started, but he couldn’t finish. What could he say to him?  _ I understand how you’re feeling?  _ He didn’t. He’d never had a family to lose before; he couldn’t possibly understand how that felt. He noticed Draco wringing his hands again, and he slowly slipped his own hand in between them; Draco clung to his hand, and finally turned to look at Harry.

 “Do you think Sirius will let me stay for the rest of the break?” He asked. There was so much vulnerability in the question. As if he were afraid Harry might actually say no.

 “Of course,” Harry smiled reassuringly. “Sirius  _ loves _ you. After all, you helped save his life.”

Harry saw a glint in Draco’s eyes, and he imagined him remembering the events of third year. As he watched him, Harry was filled with an overwhelming feeling. Suddenly everything was clear to him. The fight they had last year, every time Harry had to fight the urge to kiss Draco, the excitement Harry felt when Draco came out to him; it all made sense. He loved his bestfriend. Even more than that, he was  _ in love _ with him. His heart was pounding in his chest, and he felt like it was going to burst. Harry could feel the words in his throat. He knew he was about to tell him, but he couldn’t; not when Draco was so upset, but the words were still coming. He had to stop himself from saying them, so instead, he said something even worse.

 “I kissed Cho Chang.”

 “What?” Draco snapped back to the present.

 “I mean  _ she _ kissed  _ me _ …right before break, after the DA meeting. I was going to tell you-“

 “So you and Cho are like together now?” Draco demanded, pulling his hand away from Harry’s. Harry quickly moved around so he was kneeling in front of him.

 “ _ No _ . We’re not together. I’m sorry. I don’t know why I said anything right now. I just wanted you to know that I didn’t like it.”

 “Well thanks for informing me that Chang is a bad kisser. I’ll keep that in mind next time I decide to snog someone and neglect to tell my bestfriend about it,” Draco said sourly.

 “No, she’s not. I mean-“ Harry felt panicked. Nothing was coming out the way he wanted it to. He needed to stop talking before he said something stupid again, but he couldn’t stop. “I just realized that there was someone I’d much rather be kissing than Cho Chang.”

 “Harry, do you really think this is the best time to tell me about your new love interest?” He turned his head to the side so he was no longer looking at Harry. “I mean my dad just kicked me out, and all you want to talk about is girls.”

 “Draco!” Harry’s voice was rising more and more every time he talked. “Look at me.”

Draco turned his attention back to Harry and glared at him. “What do you-“ and then Harry was leaning forward, and their lips were crashing together.

 No one was surprised when Draco and Harry walked into the kitchen together the next morning. It was a morning full of presents, hugs, and Draco and Harry avoiding eye contact, because they couldn’t even look at each other without blushing. It was a bit awkward at times, but it was their first real Christmas together, and they got over the awkward part pretty quickly. They spent the rest of the day sneaking in kisses whenever they found themselves alone, and they had to be extra careful since the twins could apparat wherever they wanted. Draco smiled the whole day, and Harry liked to think that at least 95% of that was his doing.

 Hermione came over the next day and Harry and Draco both decided that this wasn’t something they wanted to keep from their best friends. 

 “It’s about time,” they both told them. “You two were so obvious.” Harry and Draco were surprised at their response at first, but then their eyes met and they broke into laughter. They were thinking the same thing:  _ We could say the same thing about them.  _

 Between getting to openly express his feelings for Draco, being surrounded by loving and accepting friends, and finally getting to see his real family again (Sirius, Remus, The Weasleys…), Harry could definitely say that this was his favorite Christmas. 

 For now, everything was perfect. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi!! If you're reading this, thank you for coming this far! There's still a lot more to come so make sure to leave a comment telling me if you want more!!


	7. Year Five Part Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Highlights from year five part two

 This was a moment that he knew couldn’t be taken back. This was a moment that he knew would haunt his best friend for the rest of his life. This was something Harry couldn’t shelter him from. 

 Harry knew that he would never be able to forget the look on Draco’s face when the Death Eater in front of them removed his mask and revealed himself to be Lucius Malfoy. It wasn’t a look that would appear unusual to anyone else. Draco was very good at hiding his emotions, but Harry could see what was happening; Harry could see that he was breaking. But there wasn’t any time to think about the effects this situation would have on Draco. Before they knew it, the first shots were fired, and they were running through the Ministry of Magic with Death Eaters around every corner.

 Harry couldn’t help but blame himself. He had gotten them into this mess after all. It was bad enough that he’d put himself in a life-threatening situation, but Hermione, Ron, Luna, Neville, Ginny…Draco; they were all here too. If he hadn’t been so weak, so stupid, so gullible; if he hadn’t believed that Sirius was here, then they wouldn’t be running for their lives right now.

 They were running toward a door, two Death Eaters hot on their tail. They couldn’t see where the door went, but if they could just get there they’d be-

 Falling. 

 They tumbled through the doorway and into open air. They barely had time to scream before they were hovering a few inches above the ground. Something had stopped their fall. The magical force dropped them the rest of the way, and then they were alone in a strange room. While the others got up, Harry examined the glass orb in his hand; he’d managed to save it.

Something else was grabbing his attention. Voices.Whispers. He stood and walked toward a stone arch. It glowed faintly and Harry could make out white shapes moving inside of it.

 “The voices,” He spoke. “Can you tell what they’re saying?” He could hear his friend’s footsteps as they followed him closer to the arch.

 “There aren’t any voices, Harry.” Hermione said, the tension clear in her voice. “Let’s get out of here.”

 “I hear them,” Draco whispered. Harry hadn’t even realized that his friend had moved to stand beside him.

 “Me too,” Luna added. The three of them were staring at the arch in hypnotic fixation. Harry felt a pull toward the arch. There were voices coming from it, he was sure of it.

 “Harry, it’s just an empty archway,” Hermione tried again. “ _ Please _ , Harry.”

 There was a noise then. A warning that they were no longer alone in the room. Harry held the glass firmly in one hand, and held his wand up with the other. “Get behind me.” His friends followed his order, holding their wands up like his, but they couldn’t stop what happened next.

The Death Eaters were there. They were all around them; practically on top of them. Harry couldn’t see a thing. He fell to the ground, hearing the cries of distress from his friends around him.

 “Harry!” A voice called. He briefly felt a hand- he was sure it was Draco’s- grab his wrist before it was snatched away again. And then the chaos was over and Harry was on the ground…alone. Breathing heavily, he stumbled into a standing position. Each one of his friends was being held captive by a Death Eater. He spun around to look at all of them. Neville, Ginny, Ron, Hermione, Luna…and Draco. Draco was standing right in front of him, hatred and anger burning in his eyes. His hand was twisted behind his back, and there was a wand pointed at his throat. That wand belonged to Lucius Malfoy.

Harry took a pained breath, he felt sick to his stomach. He knew Lucius was a bad guy, but to use his own son as a pawn in Lord Voldemort’s game? He never imagined he would go that far.

Lucius must’ve noticed the spark of anger in his eyes, because he began to laugh. “Did you actually believe- were you truly naive enough to think that  _ children _ stood a chance against us?”

Harry wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of even acknowledging the smirk on his face. His eyes were locked on Draco; Draco’s were focused on the floor.

 “I’ll make this simple for you, Potter.” He continued. Harry grew more and more tense with every smug word that came out of his mouth. “Give me the prophecy now, or watch your friends…die.” Harry tore his eyes away from Draco to look at the rest of his friends around the room.

 “Don’t give it to him, Harry,” Neville called, earning him a “shh” from Bellatrix.

It didn’t really seem like Harry had a choice. He was tired of letting everyone fight his battles. He would not let his friends die for him. He gave the prophecy to Lucius, and Lucius held it high, shoving Draco toward Harry. Harry caught him, and held onto him tightly, and just for a moment, it seemed like even though they’d lost this battle, they could get through anything if they were together.

 There was a flash of white light and then Sirius was standing in front of them.

 “Get away from my children,” He spoke firmly before punching Lucius in the face. Harry couldn’t keep the smile from showing. There was the fact that his godfather was a total badass, and the fact that Sirius had said “my children”, and Harry knew it was already influencing Draco. He saw him stand just a little bit taller after that.

 There were more flashes of white light, and Death Eaters were getting knocked off their feet. Harry heard glass shattering and he knew the prophecy was broken. The sound just added fuel to his fire of hatred. If no one got the prophecy in the end, then did any of tonight’s events really have any purpose? Was it all for nothing? Tonks, Remus, Kingsley, Mad-eye. They were all there. They were all fighting to protect Harry and his friends.

Sirius grabbed Draco and Harry by their arms and they ducked behind the stone archway. “Listen to me. I want you to take the others and get out of here.”

 “What? No, I’m staying with you.” Harry replied.

 “You’ve done beautifully. Both of you.” Sirius looked at both in turn. “Now let me take it from here.” It was the look in his eyes- he was pleading with them- that almost convinced Harry to listen. But Lucius was back, and Sirius was heading out to fight him, and  _ goddammit _ Harry wasn’t about to retreat now. He followed Sirius, and Draco was right behind him. It was the three of them against Lucius and another Death Eater.

 If fighting his father affected Draco in anyway, it didn’t show in his fighting. In fact, Harry had never seen him fight quite like this before; Harry had never seen him look as determined as this before.

 The room was alive. Small battles were scattered all around. Rock crumbled as missed spell after missed hex hit the walls. Bellatrix’s cackle rippled through the air. Harry, Draco, and Sirius fought on. Draco took out the other Death Eater, and Harry got rid of one of Lucius’s wands.

 “Nice job, boys!” Sirius called, blowing Lucius right off the rock.

 “Avada Kedavra!” Bellatrix appeared out of nowhere, earning her the element of surprise, but Draco was much faster than her. He pointed his wand at Sirius and knocked him out of the way, the killing curse hitting the stone arch behind them, and then he was throwing curses at Bellatrix almost faster than she could react. Sirius took a moment to realize that he had almost just died. Harry thought he saw a flicker of fear in Bellatrix’s eyes. She fled from the room with Draco in hot pursuit. Harry didn’t even have time to register what was happening. His feet took over, and he ran after Draco. He wasn’t about to let his best friend fight this crazy witch alone.

 That was one of the last things he remembered from that day. The rest was a blur. Draco scared Bellatrix away, Voldemort showed up, and then Dumbledore was there too. Soon the Minister arrived followed by millions of reporters, and Voldemort took off. In the end, Harry couldn’t help but feel that it could’ve been a lot worse. None of his friends died that day. Everyone he loved was alright…well, scratched, bruised, and scarred for life, but alive.

 When they got back, Harry was the school hero again, and Draco was asked a million questions about his father going to Azkaban. He pretended like he didn’t care in front of their classmates, but Harry was the one holding him every night when he woke in a panic from the nightmares. Harry was the one to pick up the pieces. He’d gotten so used to crawling into Draco’s bed in the middle of the night, that he just started going to sleep with him in the first place, so when Draco woke up, Harry would already be there.

It was the night before they left Hogwarts, and Draco and Harry were laying in Draco’s bed. Draco had woken up, sweaty and shaking like every night, and Harry had his arms around him. Draco slipped his hand into Harry’s -it was his sign that he had calmed down- and he absentmindedly drew circles on the back of Harry’s hand while they quietly stared at the ceiling.

 “I’m going to miss this over the summer,” Draco whispered. “I don’t know what I’m going to do without you.”

 “It’s a good thing you don’t have to find out,” Harry whispered back. He felt his arms tightening around Draco at the thought of having to split up. Draco turned his head so he was looking at Harry, and Harry more than willingly looked back at him.

 “What do you mean?” He questioned. “It’s not as if I could spend all summer at Grimmauld Place.” It was a statement, but Draco said it more like a question, his eyes searching Harry’s for any sign of humor. Harry wasn’t joking.

 “Of course, you can, and you will. Sirius will kill me if I don’t bring you back. He misses you a lot.”

 “Oh, so the greatest wizarding hero of the century isn’t enough to keep him company?” Draco joked. Harry had noticed that Draco always reverted to joking when things got serious.

 “Apparently not, that’s why he wants me there too.” Harry joked back. Draco gave him a questioning look. “ _ You _ are the hero in his eyes, Draco,” Harry said sincerely, determined to show Draco how much this meant to him. The smile on Draco’s face was quickly replaced with a look of shock. “And in mine,” Harry added. “Say you’ll come home with me. It’ll be our first summer together.” Draco simply nodded, still in shock from the seriousness of the conversation. Harry was overjoyed. The thought of spending the entire summer with his best friend- and the person he was madly in love with- filled him with so much excitement, he couldn’t sit still.

He sprung up into kneeling position. He was over top of Draco with his arms and legs on either side of him. Draco cracked a smile at his childish behavior.

 “Really Draco, I don’t know how I could ever repay you for that night at the Ministry, or any other time you’re by my side.” His joy was evident in his voice, in his eyes, in the way he was biting his lip. Harry was not good at hiding his emotions, and Draco -who didn’t need to worry about hiding anything when they were alone- smiled mischievously up at him.

 “I could think of a few ways,” He teased, and Harry -who couldn’t hold back any longer- was leaning down to kiss him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Leave a comment and tell me what you think :)  
> Next chapter should be a fun one. It's going to be their first summer together.


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